The Future of Fellwood Homes

More than 200 people turned out Monday night at the Moses Jackson Center.

As the old Fellwood is torn down...

...developers are presenting plans for the new construction.

Remember Fellwood Homes? Once a public housing neighborhood off Bay Street, now just empty shells.

As crews take them down one by one, Fellwood Homes slowly becomes a memory. But developers are looking towards the future.

“With the demolition of old Fellwood Homes almost complete, the pace is really going to accelerate,” explained Forest Lott, an architect with Sustainable Fellwood. “We have objectives to get this project designed and underway as soon as we can.”

To make that entire process smoother, developers are bringing their ideas to the community. Monday night, more than 200 people broke into groups to brainstorm and offer up questions and concerns.

“I think there’s a greater need for multifamily versus single family,” said one woman to a group of five other residents.

Another man was hoping to see: “Mixed use. You’re going to have people with a whole lot of money, and people with a whole little bit of money, like myself, all living in the same community. And that’s what gives the community vibrance.”

Community leaders say they’re confident the concerns of those who live around there will be heard by the developers.

“We have developed a culture of transparency and accountability,” said Alderman Van Johnson. “These folks would not be here if they did not think their concerns were going to be addressed. This is about them. It’s always been about them.”

Lott agreed, saying, “It’s their community, their neighborhood. They’ve been involved in the process longer than we have.”

Lott says they’ll take these ideas and tweak the general design again, before submitting an application for financing.

Most of the people WTOC spoke with are pretty pleased to have their say about the plans. Among their concerns: parking, building height restrictions, and retail development in the area.